James, whose new three-year contract at the Cavaliers is believed to be worth US$100 million (NZ$138 million), announced he would sign the deal via a video post on Uninterrupted on Thursday (Friday NZ time). James was originally selected with the No. 1 overall pick by the Cavaliers all the way back in 2003, and he remained in Cleveland through the 2009-2010 season before infamously taking his talents to the Miami Heat. Avenging his 2015 NBA Finals loss to the Golden State Warriors this past season, the four-time MVP will now look to successfully defend Cleveland’s first professional sports title since 1964. We all know a year ago as a magical, inspiring – all the words you can come up with – it was an unbelievable season.
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James could sign his long-term deal in the next two years and has the potential to earn the largest contract in National Basketball Association history surpassing Mike Conley’s $153 million deal that was signed this summer. I just can’t wait to get the group back together – the team, the franchise, more importantly, get everybody together, the fans. He’ll earn $31M in the 2016-17 season, making him the league’s highest paid player for the first time in his career.
He exercised his player opt-out this offseason on a contract that would have paid him $21.6m next year before agreeing to the record deal.
A source told ESPN that James has a player option for the third year.
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He averaged 25.3 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists in 76 regular season games. Lastly, let’s get J.R. (Smith) done.
